The two men had heard every word. The moment Maximus stood before them, their eyes lit up with excitement and relief.
The old man stared at Maximus, resentment and anger flickering across his face. His thoughts raced before he made a quick decision.
"Wait a minute! I'll give you one per cent of what was stolen!" he shouted, hobbling forward with his walking stick.
He swung the stick and struck the two robbers, forcing them to roll away from Maximus, then planted himself in front of them.
"Twenty per cent or nothing," Maximus said, raising an eyebrow.
Naturally, Maximus wouldn't have minded doing a good deed and returning the money without expecting anything in return. But he remembered this was the same store that had sold him expired canned food while he was stockpiling supplies to lock himself inside, costing him hundreds of Rubles.
And most importantly, he desperately needed cash. He might as well take this opportunity to recover some of what he had spent, along with money for rent.
"I can only go for five per cent," the old man said, grinding his teeth.
He didn't know how his luck had turned so badly today that he now had to negotiate to recover money stolen from his store, but he also knew the police wouldn't arrive in time. And if these two were affiliated with a gang, the investigation might lead nowhere if they managed to flee.
Maximus remembered that he was looking for a job and asked, "Do you have any employment?"
The old man blinked. After a brief pause, he asked with a suspicious expression, "Yes. I have a position for a receptionist. If I had one earlier, they might've put up a fight, and the cash wouldn't have been stolen so easily."
"But why do you ask?"
"Because I'm looking for work. I'll take the ten per cent and the job. With the demonstration of my capabilities, you can see that you won't have to worry about getting robbed again," Maximus replied with a smile.
The old man frowned, scrutinising Maximus from head to toe. For a moment, he suspected that Maximus might be a robber as well and that he had orchestrated everything with them.
But he quickly dismissed the thought after glancing at the two robbers. No one would be foolish enough to come up with such a plan.
"Deal. I'll give you three per cent and the job. We'll discuss the salary later. Hand over the bags first and tie up these criminals so the police can come get them," the old man said.
Maximus nodded. He handed the two bags to the old man, then turned back toward the two men.
"Stay back! I'm with the Solid Wolves Gang! Hurt me, and you'll regret it. You'll never be safe; my gang will find you! Why aren't you stopping? Are you deaf?!"
"Boss, can I call you that? You look like my boss. Just tell me what to do, anything! Just don't call the police! I only just got out; I can't go back in a cell!"
The two men first tried to threaten Maximus into releasing them as he dragged them toward the grocery store.
When they realised he had no intention of stopping, they immediately switched tactics and began begging instead.
However, Maximus didn't slow down.
The old man checked the bags of money and sighed in relief when he saw that everything was accounted for. He watched Maximus drag the two robbers into the store, hesitated for a moment, then shook his head in resignation.
"It's not worth it," he muttered, before walking back inside and closing the store door behind him.
He flipped the sign from 'Open' to 'Closed,' then quickly followed after Maximus, both to show him where they temporarily locked up criminals.
***
Ten minutes later,
"That's the most I can offer," Mr Qin, the old man whose grocery store Maximus had saved from robbery, said as he shook his head.
"Fine. Give me some food on the house to eat, and I'll take it," Maximus said with a nod.
He had already secured a salary higher than that of a typical grocery store receptionist, as he was also acting as a bodyguard, so he saw no reason to push further.
If he continued, the old man might start thinking he was affiliated with the gang and that this was just a method to rip him off and shut down his store.
Besides, Maximus had already obtained 5,000 Rubles from the cash he had recovered from the thieves. With that, he could pay back his rent for several months and restock his home with food.
Maximus had been feeling hungry ever since he returned to his body after role-playing. While it had been easy to manage earlier due to his transformation, now it felt as though his stomach was eating itself from the inside out.
Mr Qin frowned. "You've taken a portion of my money, I'm paying you higher than average for a receptionist job, and now you want to eat from my store without paying?" he shouted, slamming his clenched fist onto the table.
"I'm starting to think you're from the same gang that just robbed my store. Are you planning to turn my shop into a hideout or use it to feed your gang? Answer me! Don't take me for a fool?!"
Maximus simply shook his head.
Under Mr Qin's astonished and horrified gaze, he reached into his hoodie pocket and took out a knife. He grabbed the metallic blade and bent it with his bare hands.
Crack!!
The blade snapped in two. Maximus placed the broken knife on the table for Mr Qin to examine.
Mr Qin's face twisted into a mixture of shock and disbelief as he stared at the broken blade. He picked up the pieces, examined them briefly, then dropped them back onto the table before looking up at Maximus again.
"Y-You're an... awakened human?" he asked, his voice trembling as though he was afraid to finish the sentence. He pointed at Maximus.
Maximus nodded. He hadn't wanted to reveal his awakening so soon, but he needed to if he was going to take advantage of the opportunity before him. Awakened humans were known for their enormous appetites, so it was the perfect explanation for his current situation.
Besides, being an awakened human wasn't a bad thing. They were beings who stood at the apex of humanity, protecting mankind from the terrifying beasts and dungeons that threatened to drive them into extinction.
In this world, organisations fell quickly if they weren't backed by an awakened human. Maximus needed to prepare properly for his new status, especially since he planned to lie low until he was ready to take the Hunter's Exam and officially become a registered Hunter.
Mr Qin's face shifted through a mixture of various expressions before he asked, "Are you a newly awakened human?" His gaze sharpened.
Maximus nodded, keeping the timing of his awakening a secret.
Mr Qin nodded as well, a look of understanding appearing on his face. "That explains why I haven't heard of you," he muttered.
"Are you a registered Hunter?" he asked, his gaze suspicious.
Maximus shook his head in response.
"That makes sense. If you were a registered Hunter, you wouldn't be wasting your time here applying for a receptionist position at an unknown, rundown grocery store," Mr Qin said with a nod.
"Still, I can't help but feel a little suspicious. As a Hunter, you could gain money, fame, power, and security by working for the Hunter Association. There's no need for you to work in a place like this, even if you're short on cash. I've never seen or heard of anyone doing something like this."
"You don't need to worry. I just don't feel like registering with the Hunter Association at the moment, and I'd like that to remain a secret," Maximus replied.
"Very well. Though I don't understand why you'd choose to keep your awakened identity hidden, I'll do my best to ensure that no one finds out," Mr Qin said with a nervous chuckle.
"Since we've settled this, I'll agree to your request to eat from my store without payment, but only during non-working hours. There will also be restrictions on what and how much you can eat," he explained.
"If that still isn't acceptable, you're free to leave. While having an awakened human secretly working here would greatly improve my store's safety, I'm still running a business, and I don't intend to go bankrupt."
"It's a deal," Maximus said, extending his hand.
"I'll prepare the paperwork immediately so you can sign it and start as early as tomorrow," Mr Qin replied as he shook Maximus's hand.
Maximus nodded.
Suddenly, the sound of sirens echoed through the room.
"Tch. They're late as usual. Let's hand the gang over to the police first, then finish up the rest," Mr Qin said as he stood up.
Maximus rose from his seat as well.
They went to the storeroom where the criminals had been tied up and handed them over to the police. Afterwards, they quickly finalised the contract, and Mr Qin escorted Maximus out of the store.
Watching Maximus disappear into the distance, Mr Qin let out a quiet sigh. "I hope I don't regret this," he muttered before turning back into his store.
Maximus slipped into an alley and vanished into the shadows. He went to purchase some items from another grocery store with the money he had just received.
Several minutes later, Maximus emerged from another alley and walked toward his apartment building.
"It seems I'll have to use Shadow Jump whenever I go out if I want to return home without drawing attention," Maximus muttered to himself.
He entered the compound and stopped in front of Mr Jonathan's door.
After briefly hesitating, Maximus knocked lightly.
No one answered.
With a heaviness in his chest, Maximus knocked again.
Moments later, the sound of locks clicking echoed as the door slowly opened.
"Mr Jonathan!" Maximus's eyes widened in shock and surprise.
He examined the old man from head to toe.
Mr Jonathan was dressed in his usual attire, a pair of black trousers and a grey shirt. He wasn't wearing his Hunter gear, nor did he look like someone who had just survived a horrific dungeon incident.
Maximus realised that perhaps by luck or fate, Mr Jonathan was the one who had survived.
"Why are you looking at me as though you've seen a ghost?" Jonathan asked, his gaze narrowing at Maximus and the grocery bags on the ground beside him. He thought the young man before him was broke and couldn't help but wonder how he had managed to get all these things.
"I'm sorry. I was just startled," Maximus replied quickly, regaining his composure. He smoothly shifted the conversation and handed Jonathan a white envelope.
"I came to deliver this. It's payment for last month's rent, this month's rent, and next month's as well, including the interest I owed you."
Jonathan quickly took the envelope, opened it, and looked inside. His eyes widened in surprise as he sucked in a sharp breath.
Maximus's rent was only 500 Robles per month. However, the envelope contained 2,000 Robles. That meant Maximus had paid more than double the interest on his debt.
Jonathan turned to Maximus with a suspicious gaze. "A few hours ago, you didn't have a single cash and could barely stand on your feet. Now you're going shopping and handing over this much money as if it's nothing. Tell me the truth, where did you get it? Didn't I warn you about becoming a criminal? Are you trying to put my family in trouble?"
"I found a money lender and pawned a few of my belongings," Maximus replied calmly. "Once I get the job I told you about, I'll buy them back."
"A new money lender, huh? If they agreed to lend you money, then they clearly haven't heard of your story," Jonathan said with a snort.